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Weld Announces Bid for West Virginia Attorney General

By JOSELYN KING and STEVEN ALLEN ADAMS 6 min read

WHEELING - The last time West Virginia saw an attorney general from a Northern Panhandle county was 1897. That person was Thomas S. Riley, an Ohio County resident who held the office from 1893 to 1897.

Brooke County resident Ryan Weld, a current state senator, is seeking to change that. He officially launched his candidacy for attorney general during a ceremony Monday in Wheeling.

Weld announced his bid for attorney general in 2024 to a large crowd gathered in the courtroom at West Virginia Independence Hall. Among those in attendance were former U.S. Rep. David B. McKinley, fellow state senators Charles Clements, R-Wetzel, Laura Wakim Chapman, R-Ohio, and Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, and delegates Erikka Storch, R-Ohio, and Charles Sheedy, R-Marshall.

In comments following his announcement, Weld acknowledged the need to traverse the state as the biggest challenge facing political candidates for statwide office from the Northern Panhandle.

"But that's OK - I got new tires last week," he said. "I'm ready to go, and we're ready to go everywhere. We'll be everywhere.

"We have 12 months to get out and meet the people of the state, and let them know who we are and what we stand for. I want to hear what they are concerned about, and what they see as the future of West Virginia. I'm looking forward to it."

Current Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced last week he would run for governor, opening up his seat in 2024.

No other candidates have announced in the attorney general race, though State Sen. Mike Stuart, R-Kanawha, is expected to get involved.

"I can only control what I do," Weld said of other potential candidates.

Weld's bid for attorney general also means he can't file for re-election to his current senate term that expires at the end of 2024.

Weld said if elected, he would continue Morrisey's role as attorney general in being a voice for West Virginia against federal authorities wanting to curtail industrial interests and hurt the state.

"The federal government has been enacting all kinds of regulations that have been excessive, and has really tried to undermine what we have been trying to do here in West Virginia," he said. "Those industries serve as the basis of what we are trying to build our future on.

"We're a changing state, and we just can't let D.C. dictate our future to us. West Virginia's future is its own making, and part of that is fighting on behalf of the state to make sure ... we're allowed to make our own decisions."

One issue Weld wants to look into as attorney general is assisting municipalities in dealing with dilapidated properties and absentee property owners. He is city attorney for his hometown of Wellsburg.

"It takes a lot of resources - and not just money ... for these cities to hold people accountable and get these buildings torn down," Weld said. "The attorney general's office can serve as a hub for that, and help those municipalities that don't have all the resources to get that done.

"Can you imagine all the difference that could make in our state? If all these cities had the opportunity to get these structures down and eliminate all the eyesores in their community? What a difference that would make."

Weld has served two four-year terms in the state Senate representing the 1st District which includes Hancock, Brooke, and Ohio counties and part of Marshall County. He also serves as Senate Majority Whip, vice chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and chairman of the Senate Military Committee. Weld also served one term in the House of Delegates.

Weld said he has spent the last year considering a run for a statewide office.

"I just feel that I've been able to accomplish a lot that I set out to do in the Senate and really have helped my district move forward on a number of things," Weld said. "I just feel a very strong pull to help the entire state, not just my Senate district. And this is just something that I feel is the next step to be able to do that. I feel very strongly about it, and that's why I've decided to do this."

A native of Weirton and Wellsburg, Weld is a 1998 graduate of Brooke High School and a 2003 graduate of Fairmont State University. He earned his law degree from Duquesne University in 2015. His legal career includes serving as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Brooke County. Weld works as an attorney for the Spilman Thomas and Battle law firm in Wheeling and serves as city attorney for Wellsburg.

Weld also holds the rank of captain in the United States Air Force Reserves. He received his commission in 2005 and has served on active duty multiple times, including as an intelligence officer with the Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan. Weld has served in assignments in Germany and Washington, D.C.

The Attorney General's Office has also taken a key role in the fight against opioids. The office has won more than $950 million in settlements with major drug manufacturers and suppliers, including a $400 million settlement with distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson over the overflow of prescription painkillers to the state.

Weld said as a former Brooke County assistant prosecuting attorney, he saw first-hand the effects of the opioid crisis on families. As the vice chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Weld helped craft legislation to combat the flow of opioids into the state. He believes those experiences will be an asset in continuing the work of the Attorney General's Office in regard to opioids.

"I think that West Virginia is undoubtedly one of the states that has been harmed the most by the opioid crisis, and Attorney General Morrisey has done a tremendous job in that area," Weld said. "Those cases aren't going to all be done and wrapped up just because he leaves office at the end of 2024. The next attorney general is going to have to step in and continue that work."

Weld points back to his career in public service, his military service, and his experiences helping implement conservative legislative priorities - including legal reform, lowering tax rates, expanding school choice and more - as reasons for the public to put their trust in him to be the next Attorney General.

"The conservative policies that we have enacted, I really think it changed West Virginia and I've been a part of all of that," Weld said. "These are all conservative policies that I've been proud to be a part of. Combined with my prior history and the fight that I've shown for my district, it has all prepared me to be West Virginia's next attorney general."

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